It is known in the arts of engineering and construction to employ piles that are inserted into the ground for supporting a specific structure.
Helical screw piles for piling and screwing into a foundation or the ground range in various forms, sizes, materials and shapes. Piles may be designed to suit specific applications directed to engineering and construction type projects.
Screw piles offer numerous advantages over other types of piling. For example, screw piles can be loaded without the typical delays associated with cast in place piling. Cast in place generally requires a 7-day waiting period before work may resume to validate concrete strength. Conversely, screw piling is monitored from torque values during installation. These values directly relate to load capacity of a screw pile. Once torque values are achieved, the pile can be “loaded” with no further delays.
Furthermore, as there are no tailing removal required when using helical screw piles, ground disturbance is minimal. Screw piling equipment operate at lower noise levels due to rotation of piling versus that of auger type or driven piling. A disadvantage of cast in place piling is the lack of availability and proximity of concrete to job sites at remote locations. This disadvantage is overcome by screw piling equipment since concrete is not required during use of this equipment.
Conventional screw piles comprise a shaft (or pipe) and a screw helix which is mounted onto the shaft. It should be noted, however, that the shape of the shaft or pipe is not limited to round. It can be square and/or a combination of several shapes. Helix arrangement and the number of helixes mounted on the shaft may also vary. Typically, the helix component of the pile is welded onto the shaft, for example, by metal fusion welding. For piles of this type, certified welders follow strict guidelines and quality measures to complete the manufacture of a screw pile. This can be a cumbersome, complex and costly process.
Many conventional screw piles suffer from drawbacks such as inconvenience of transportation and storage, and complexity of manufacturing due to the strict guidelines and quality measures needed for welding the components of the piles.
What is needed, therefore, are helical screw pile assemblies that can be stored and transported as unassembled components, while providing for a non-complex and rapid means to assemble the components when needed.